The era and culture that gave us Beowulf

The Origins of a Nation

The poem Dates as far back as 800 CE Is untitled & the oldest (existent) English epic Is called Beowulf after a Scandinavian hero Was first translated in 1818 into Latin Was written in Old English, an early Germanic language

The manuscript Dates to 1000 CE Was recorded by two scribes Was housed in Robert Bruce Cotton’s collection in the 17th

century Is also known as Cotton Vitellius A.xv Was damaged by fire in 1731

A Scandinavian Hero’s British Origins

The hero Is Beowulf, bee (beo) + wulf (wolf) = beewolf or bear Is believed by many to be fictional Is believed by some to be a figure from other ancient

Scandinavian stories Is an archetypeThe story Is set in Southern Sweden and Denmark Features burials similar to that excavated at Sutton Hoo May have been composed as an elegy for a dead king Contains both pagan and Christian elements Bridges the various cultures thriving within Britain

A Scandinavian Hero’s British Origins

Britain’s geography20 miles west of Franceonly 800 miles from the north to the southIreland, England, Wales, and Scotland comprise

less land than the state of New MexicoBritain’s resources include

iron, coal, and oilBritain’s diet includes

fish, shellfish, eel, mutton, lamb, beef, and vegetables such as turnips and potatoes

Background of The British Isles

Iberians (prior to 800 BCE)Celts (800 – 600 BCE)Romans (43 CE)Germanic tribes (449 – 600 CE)

Jutes, Angles, Saxons, and some FriesiansDanes (600 – 800 CE)

Two waves of Vikings invasionsNormans (1066 CE)

History of Early British Peoples

Map

Two primary groups of Celts moved into Britain during this period:

The Britons who inhabitant the island of EnglandThe Gaels who inhabited the island of Ireland

Celtic SocietyDivision: Celts lived in groups called clansRule: by the chieftain of the clanReligion: Wicca

Wiccan priests were called DruidsDruids served many roles in Celtic society:

spiritual advisors, poets, prophets, political advisors, diplomats, sacrificers, and historians

Celts (800 – 600 BCE)

Celtic Society continued…Spoken Language: all Celts spoke different

dialects of P.I.E. (Proto Indo European – the mother language of the European languages)

Writing system: a linear writing system used for recording statistics primarily (the only piece of literature that survived is “The Book of the Dun Cow”)

Celts (800 – 600 BCE)

Sample of Celtic Writing

Celtic Society continued…Mythology: primarily preserved in oral epics

that contained the following elements – theme of the beheading contest (as illustrated in

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight)warriors fighting with their war dogsthe supernatural (including dragons, monsters

[Grendel], fairies, pixies, elves, banshees, leprechauns, etc.)

heroic bragginggrim humorstories that would later meld with Arthurian legend

Celts (800 – 600 BCE)

Celtic Society concluded…Homes: circular and built of sodUnity: despite living in clans, the Celts felt a

sense of unity across the isle

Celts (800 – 600 BCE)

Between 55 and 54 BCE, Julius Caesar invades Britain, but not to conquer (He came, he saw, he left.)

43 CE Claudius invades with 40,000 troopsMet Celtic resistance (ex. Boedecia, the warrior

queen)Drove the Picts and Scots, brutal Celtic clans, into

northern Britain (what is now Scotland)Assimilated Roman culture into the Celtic resulting in

Romanized Celts and Celticized RomansEstablished army posts that developed into town

Romans (43 CE)

Built roads, forums, temples, statues, villas, and outdoor theatres

Dug mines and excavated lead and iron ore Brought the Christian religion

407 CE City of Rome is attacked by Germanic tribes: Goths and Visigoths; and by Mongolian tribes under Attila the Hun

410 CE Roman soldiers withdraw from Britain to defend Rome, but Rome is sacked and the Empire destroyed

Britain is left susceptible to invasion and attack from both within and without

Romans (43 CE)

Hadrian’s Wall

Begun in the year 122 CE between England and Scotland

The Invitation of the JutesScots and Picts begin raiding Celts to the south after

the Roman departureKing Vortigern invites 2 Jutish chieftains, Hangus

and Horsa, to force the Picts and Scots back beyond Hadrian’s Wall in exchange for a piece of land (Kent)

Jutes drive the Picts and Scots north once more and claim their land

Jutes, seeing how easily Britain could be taken, turn on Vortigern and this opens the door for the invasions of other Germanic tribes, the Angles, Saxon, and Friesians, during the 5th century CE

Germanic tribes (449 – 600 CE)

Germanic Conquest (The Rule of the “Anglo-Saxons”)The Germanic tribes

arrive in shipsacquire horses to raid inlandinvade during the summer, leave for winter, and

return in springprefer annihilation over assimilationare pagansforce surviving Celts into Wales and Cornwall and

call them Walas or “foreigners”The Germanic conquest is long, slow, and cruel

Germanic tribes (449 – 600 CE)

The Division of BritainNorthumbria, Mercia, and East Angia belonged

to the AnglesKent belonged to the JutesEssex, Wessex, and Sussex belonged to the

SaxonsWales and Cornwall belonged to the Celts

Germanic tribes (449 – 600 CE)

The Division of Britain: A Political Heptarchy

Germanic tribes (449 – 600 CE)

The Anglo-Saxons in BritainThe Angles, Saxons, Jutes, and Friesians were

from East Denmark and Germany and came to be known collectively as the Anglo-Saxons

Small dark people (think of the barbarians portrayed in the beginning of Gladiator)

Little regard for womenMuch regard for war, money, tenacity, fidelity,

endurance

Germanic tribes (449 – 600 CE)

The Anglo-Saxons in Britain continued…Governed by tribes that stressed kinship and

loyalty but there was not overall unitySociety was ruled by the concept of wergild, or

man price, that governed revengeSocial echelon:

King Witan Earls Thanes Freemen Churls ThrallsGood Kings received absolute loyalty from the people

because they were givers of rings and treasureMembers of the tribe were valued, but those outside

it were not

Germanic tribes (449 – 600 CE)

The Anglo-Saxons in Britain continued…Homes were meadhalls (Heorot in Beowulf) for

the men and long houses, which were cold and smelly, for the women, children, and beasts

War was both a game and a businessAngles/Saxons/Jutes come to Britain speaking

various dialects of German, but the dialects are quickly merged into the language that is known today as Anglo-Saxon, or Old English (OE)

Germanic tribes (449 – 600 CE)

Meadhall

Germanic tribes (449 – 600 CE)

Old English (Anglo Saxon)

Modern English

Christianization of the Anglo-Saxons or the Re-Christianization of BritainAnglo-Saxons were pagan597 CE King Æthelbert invites (St.) Augustin to Kent and

was the first Germanic king to be baptized; he was also recognized by Pope Gregory as a the King of England

Augustin rapidly Christianizes Kent and Canterbury is established under Æthelbert

Oswald of Northumbria invites the Irish monk (St.) Aidan from Iona

674 CE the monasteries of Jarrow, Wearmouth, and Lindisfarne are established and the monks there create large libraries

Germanic tribes (449 – 600 CE)

Anglo-Saxon LiteratureMercians are the first group to develop a writing

system in Old English and produced many literary texts and charters

Most contemporary knowledge of OE is accredited to King Alfred the Great (871 – 899 CE)had an interest in the vernacular (local language versus

Latin)commissioned scholars to translate texts, documents,

and the bible into the vernacularscholars he hired were from Mercia, so the dialect

of OE that survived is the Mercian

Germanic tribes (449 – 600 CE)

Anglo-Saxon Literature continued…OE writers include:

Venerable Bede – the first recorder of the English history

Caedmon – England’s first poetNennius – the author of Historia Brittonum

OE Literature was initially passed on in the oral tradition and later written down by Christian monks; the monks may have added Christian elements to pagan stories

Germanic tribes (449 – 600 CE)

The First Wave of VikingsPirates, looters, raidersFound it easy to conquer the Anglo-Saxons who

had become “civilized”Burned monasteries and manuscriptsControlled most of England by 856 CEKing Alfred the Great lost Wessex to the Danes,

but then won a decisive victory over King Gunthrum at Edington that resulted in a stalemate between the Anglo-Saxons and the Danes

Danes settle in an area known as Danelaw

Danes (600 – 800CE))

The Second Wave of VikingsÆthelred the Ill-Advised took the English throne in the 11th

century Æthelred was advised to pay Danegeld to keep the peace,

but he drained England of money which the Danes then used to buy English land

Anglo-Saxons are malcontented under Æthelred’s rule and side with the Danes

Upon Æthelred’s death, Cnute becomes the first Danish king of England (he is a good king)

Upon Cnute’s death in 1035 CE, Æthelred’s descendent, Edward the Confessor, takes the throne

Edward is known for his piety and dies without an heir in 1066 CE

Danes (600 – 800CE))

With no direct heir to Edward, many contenders who claim to deserve the throne come forward

Basis for claims to the throne included being selected by the witan, being requested by the dying king, having martial superiority, and receiving alleged promises.

1066 CE Harold takes the British throne, but his brother then wars against him for it

In the meantime, William (the illegitimate Duke of Normandy) lands at Hastings with throne-lust in his heart and an alleged promise made by Edward giving the crown to William

The Battle for a King

The Battle of HastingsAnglo-Saxons versus the Normans6,000 – 7,000 soldiers on each side composed of knights

with bows and arrows and cavalry with long spearsKing Harold is mutilated beyond recognition; William is the

victorThe British Witan attempted to name Edgar the Ætheling

as King, but William marched to London; burning, looting, and hanging people along the way

William is crowned King of England on Christmas day, 1066 CE

Anglo-Saxon literature is destroyed: pages literally erased for new use or used to polish or line pie pans

The Battle for a King

Tying it to historyThought to have first been written between the

8th and 11th centuryBefore then was an oral story (spoken)

Anglo-Saxon poetryThe lines do not rhyme (like blank verse)Each line has four beatsClosely tied with the Church and the pagan

worldEach line has a pause after the second beat,

giving each line two halvesUses Alliteration and Kennings

Beowulf

Characteristics of Epic PoetryLongNarrativeLarger than life heroEmbodies the values of a particular societyIncludes elements of myth, legend, folklore,

and historyHas a serious toneUses more formal, almost grand language

Epic Poetry

Bravery in battleLoyalty for king or leaderBards or Poets were used to elevate heroes of

the tribe and were as important as the warriors themselves

Faith in God to intervene positively with fateInfluence of old religion – paganismWarfare was the order of the dayAmassing a fortune in battle was the goal

Anglo-Saxon culture in Beowulf

Man’s positive interaction with his fateDefinition of good and evilGreed as man’s downfallVanity as man’s downfallGod’s positive interventionHeroism

Concepts/Themes of Beowulf

Beowulf – The protagonistGeatish heroIn his youth he personifies all of the best values

of the cultureIn his old age he proves a wise and effective

rulerKing Hrothgar

King of the DanesWise and aged rulerFather figure to Beowulf

Characters of Beowulf

Grendel – AntagonistDemon (descended from Cain)His existence is retribution for Cain's murder

of AbelGrendel’s Mother

Has no name in the storyLess human than Grendel

The DragonAncient, powerful serpentGuards a horde of treasure

Characters